Once you have allowed your mincemeat to fully develop its flavour over a few weeks you can start on the mince pies. There is nothing like the smell of a baking mince pie, it is better than any Christmas scented candle for making your home smell festive. The pastry recipe here has always been my go to but this year I have been experimenting with psyllium husk instead of xanthan gum and I would add 2 teaspoons of psyllium husk instead of the 1 1/2 teaspoons of xanthan gum to the 12 ounces of flour in the recipe below but feel free to use whichever you have to hand, both will work but adding either to the flour does make a pastry that is easier to handle

It is now getting perilously close to Christmas, this week for me is going to be full of the madness of finding and decorating a tree, starting my gift shopping, going to a couple of Christmas parties and trying to wrap up work for the year, in other words this is going to be a stressful few weeks. As an antidote to this I am planning on spending as many evenings as possible wrapped in a blanket on the couch watching Christmas movies and eating nice things.
A good mince pie should be full of flavour, ideally a bit sticky from syrupy juices that have bubbled up over the crust during baking, it should be golden brown, crisp and very moreish.
I have had a few dodgy experiences with bought Gluten Free mince pies in the past, one exploded in a cloud of sweet dust as soon as I bit in to it and I spent the next ten minutes choking on icing sugar and crumbled pastry, this was not pleasant. I am sure things have improved but to be honest I like my own so much that I am not going to spend ridiculous money on GF mice pies just to see if they are any good.
The pies I make use a pastry that is a version of the pastry I make for quiche and savoury tarts as I find it stands up well to a rich fruit filling. This basic recipe is embellished with sugar, orange zest and juice and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar to give it a seasonal flavour.

• In a bowl stir together the flour, sugar, xanthan gum (or psyllium husk), salt and orange zest
• Grate or cut in the chilled butter and lard.
• Rub in the fats with your fingers until you have a fine breadcrumb consistency
• Make a well in the centre and add enough of the orange juice to make a nice firm dough, if you don’t get enough juice from your orange you can add a bit of water.
• Wrap the dough in cling film and allow to chill in the fridge for at least a half hour.
• While the dough is chilling pre heat the oven to Gas 6, 200, 400f

• Butter your baking sheet, I use a bun tray as I like a deep filled mince pie but use whatever mould you like.
• Remove the dough from the fridge and place on a floured surface, roll it out to a thickness of about ¼- ½ cm.
• Using a pastry cutter or a giant wine glass, cut the pastry to fit your baking tray.
• To top the pie you could use another circle of pastry to make a completely closed in pie, you could use a star cutter or any other shape you like or you could cut your pastry in to strips and create a lattice work effect on the pie.

• Fill each pie with about a teaspoon and a half of mincemeat and brush the edges and the top of the pie with the egg-wash.
• Sprinkle the surface of the pie with the cinnamon sugar mix and pop the trays in the oven. This amount of pastry made 2 trays of 12 pies and I swapped shelves halfway through the baking to ensure even cooking.
• Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, keep an eye on them towards the end of the baking time as they can go from pale gold to charred in a matter of minutes.

These pies freeze really well, just defrost and heat in a warm oven and they should crisp up nicely. Enjoy on their own, with a good dollop of whipped cream, or brandy butter but definitely enjoy them with good company and as much festive cheer as you can muster.

One last repost from last year as the pastry in these mincepies is the best and works so well gluten free that I don’t think I will ever risk trying any other kind. The combination of lard and butter makes for a crisp yet sturdy crust that holds upwell against the bubbling juices of the mincemeat and the addition of orange juice gives it an extra bit of luxury. Coming up soon will be the best gluten free sponge for trifle and some other festive treats.

It is now getting perilously close to Christmas, this week for me is going to be full of the madness of finding and decorating a tree, starting my gift shopping, going to a couple of Christmas parties and trying to wrap up work for the year, in other words this is going to be a stressful week. As an antidote to this I am planning on spending as many evenings as possible wrapped in a blanket on the couch watching Christmas movies and eating nice things, I started this balm for the soul over the weekend with red wine, cheese and Fred Clause followed by a rousing dose of Die Hard and I am planning on moving on to mince pies, more red wine and possibly Elf this evening.
A good mince pie should be full of flavour, ideally a bit sticky from syrupy juices that have bubbled up over the crust during baking, it should be golden brown, crisp and very moreish.
I have had a few dodgy experiences with bought Gluten Free mince pies in the past, one exploded in a cloud of sweet dust as soon as I bit in to it and I spent the next ten minutes choking on icing sugar and crumbled pastry, this was not pleasant. I am sure things have improved but to be honest I like my own so much that I am not going to spend ridiculous money on GF mice pies just to see if they are any good.
The pies I make use a pastry that is a version of the pastry I make for quiche and savoury tarts as I find it stands up well to a rich fruit filling. This basic recipe is embellished with sugar, orange zest and juice and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar to give it a seasonal flavour.

• In a bowl stir together the flour, sugar, xanthan gum, salt and orange zest
• Grate or cut in the chilled butter and lard.
• Rub in the fats with your fingers until you have a fine breadcrumb consistency
• Make a well in the centre and add enough of the orange juice to make a nice firm dough, if you don’t get enough juice from your orange you can add a bit of water.
• Wrap the dough in cling film and allow to chill in the fridge for at least a half hour.
• While the dough is chilling pre heat the oven to Gas 6, 200, 400f

• Butter your baking sheet, I use a bun tray as I like a deep filled mince pie but use whatever mould you like.
• Remove the dough from the fridge and place on a floured surface, roll it out to a thickness of about ¼- ½ cm.
• Using a pastry cutter or a giant wine glass, cut the pastry to fit your baking tray.
• To top the pie you could use another circle of pastry to make a completely closed in pie, you could use a star cutter or any other shape you like or you could cut your pastry in to strips and create a lattice work effect on the pie.

• Fill each pie with about a teaspoon and a half of mincemeat and brush the edges and the top of the pie with the egg-wash.
• Sprinkle the surface of the pie with the cinnamon sugar mix and pop the trays in the oven. This amount of pastry made 2 trays of 12 pies and I swapped shelves halfway through the baking to ensure even cooking.
• Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, keep an eye on them towards the end of the baking time as they can go from pale gold to charred in a matter of minutes.

These pies freeze really well, just defrost and heat in a warm oven and they should crisp up nicely. Enjoy on their own, with a good dollop of whipped cream, or brandy butter but definitely enjoy them with good company and as much festive cheer as you can muster.